Crypto in Russia has officially moved out of the gray zone and become licensed.

On October 6, the Bank of Russia announced the first list of crypto market participants: 5 digital custodians and 4 crypto exchange operators. The list is based on the transitional provisions of the Digital Currency and Digital Rights Law (282-FZ), which took effect on September 1.

1️⃣ Custody list: Sberbank, VTB, Voltari, Atomyze (part of T-Technologies), Cloud Infrastructure

2️⃣ Exchange list: VTB, T-Invest Lab, Zefir, Sistema-Crypto. VTB got both licenses.

3️⃣ The definition of an exchange dealer is narrowly drawn: buying and selling digital currencies with its own funds and in its own name, outside organized trading. Put simply, it’s more like a bank’s OTC desk than an exchange order book.

4️⃣ Timeline: Sberbank says it plans to launch its first crypto products on December 1, initially supporting $BTC, $ETH, and $USDT, accessible directly through existing apps like SberBank Online, SberInvestments, and SberBusiness. VTB says it plans to open access to more investors through VTB My Investments in November and its own exchange service in December.

5️⃣ Transition period: Trading and accounting rules must be followed from the day of registration, with full compliance required by September 1, 2027.

6️⃣ One thing remains unchanged: using cryptocurrency to pay for goods and services is still prohibited.

My take:

This isn’t “Russia embracing crypto”; it’s “Russia bringing crypto into the banking system.” Major banks are stepping in as custodians and OTC desks, with nationally popular banking apps as the user gateway—a distribution advantage that dwarfs that of local platforms.

For retail investors, there are now more compliant access points. For the industry, another major country has chosen the “banks with licenses + central bank oversight + no spending it as money” approach. The fact that $USDT is included in the initial list of supported assets is telling in itself.

Sources: Bank of Russia announcement dated October 6; Interfax; Cointelegraph (October 7).

This is not investment advice.